


Behind Closed Doors

by DetectiveCrimson



Series: Pencember 2020 [17]
Category: Arrowverse - Fandom, DCU, The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Established Relationship, Idiots in Love, M/M, Secret Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-10 20:13:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,112
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28472952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DetectiveCrimson/pseuds/DetectiveCrimson
Summary: The Flash is facing off against Captain Cold when he is shot with the wrong setting.When Barry recovers, he returns home to a brooding boyfriend.[Pencember Challenge Day 17 - Prompt; 'Frostbite.']
Relationships: Barry Allen & Leonard Snart, Barry Allen/Leonard Snart
Series: Pencember 2020 [17]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2037226
Comments: 2
Kudos: 59





	Behind Closed Doors

**Author's Note:**

> This is a short one-shot for a challenge my writing group—only two members including myself, feel free to apply—came up with called Pencember, its basically Inktober but writing.
> 
> If you want to take part, you can find the prompt list here -> http://aminoapps.com/p/845jwp <-  
> That said, if you do take part, let me know so I can read your works!  
> ____________________________________________________
> 
> I've been playing games, I have no real defense, don't judge me, I also wrote eleven one-shots and proof-read (using Grammarly, because I didn't have time or patience to read through them all,) twenty-seven in one day.  
> ____________________________________________________

It had become routine, the cat and mouse game they played within their personas.  
Captain Cold stole, Flash chased, they bantered, they fought, sometimes Captain Cold got away with the goods, sometimes he didn't.  
It was actually, eerily similar to their home life-  
Len teased, Barry countered, they bantered, and sometimes the night ended with Barry writhing in their sheets, sometimes it ended with the two holding each other as they drifted off- surprisingly, the latter was Barry's preferred way of falling asleep, not that they didn't have post-coital cuddling- but there was something about forgetting *why* they had gotten together at first, for a moment, and relishing in what had grown from it instead.  
Both men had agreed to drop their 'baggage,' at the door, not bringing up Len's jobs or Barry's heroing-  
It was avoiding the main problem their relationship had, but it had been working for them-

Until a mistake was made, shockingly enough, by Len of all people, it was shocking, because if anyone was going to make a mistake, both of them agreed it would be Barry, Len planned too much for him to make the mistake, Barry was impulsive that mistakes and reckless behavior was like a second coating over his suit.  
But Len didn't account, on that particular day, for a metahuman to get in between their usual banter.  
If you asked the thief what he had seen that day, he didn't know if he could answer-  
The metahuman was huge, like if the Hulk and a whale decided to have an unholy lovechild kind of huge-  
But he wasn't dumb, he obviously retained his human intelligence despite not having a human body, (for lack of a better term,) talking as clearly as Cold had been.  
Though apparently, having the capability for human intelligence didn't mean he was *smart.*

The metahuman apparently, admired Cold's work- and thought the best way to get into Cold's 'rogues,' was to 'break the Flash,' for him.  
He clearly didn't understand that Cold *needed* the Flash, as much as Len needed Barry really-  
Flash was the only one that could, ironically, keep up with him, giving him a decent challenge without having to worry about someone stepping out of line and killing someone.  
So when the metahuman attacked, he should of expected Cold to take Flash's side.  
To neither's surprise, the two worked together well, complimenting each other in battle almost as much as they did in private, (which considering complimenting him was the best way to get him flustered, Len did it more often than he should have.)  
It didn't take them long to take down the metahuman, despite how invulnerable he seemed to be, between Flash's speed and Cold's gun, they finished him off fairly quickly.

And so, they could jump back to what they *had* been doing, which, was Cold stealing a painting and Flash trying to stop him.  
The thief had planned on shooting him and then leaving, it hurt, but at a low setting, Barry would jump back from it in mere minutes-  
Of course, that was a *low* setting, when Cold had shot him, he had somehow managed to forget putting the setting *back,* after fighting the metahuman, (having needed to higher it just to do a little damage.)  
Cold resisting running towards him, walking slowly towards him, "You aren't dead are you?"  
Though his words were spoken with his calm drawl, the hero could tell how anxious he really was, managing to smile through the pain, "You haven't killed me yet."  
"Well then, till next time," he said with a salute before leaving the hero.  
"Thank god for thermal padding."  
The hero was quick to work his way out of the ice, running to Star Labs and all but collapsing on the medical bed while Caitlyn checked the damage while trying to warm him up as well.

It had been a few hours since Caitlyn had cleared him only now being able to return home.  
When he stepped into the living room, he wasn't surprised to see Len still awake.  
"How do you feel?"  
Barry sighed, pushing his shoes off and hanging his jacket up before he walked over to the older man, straddling his lap, Len wrapping his arms around his waist to keep the hero from falling.  
"Better than I did a few hours ago, that's for sure."  
"I didn't mean to blast you with a high setting."  
Much to Len's surprise, Barry just laughed at him, "Come on, that goes without saying."  
"Does it?"  
The hero rolled his eyes before bringing his hands from his shoulders to cup his face, caressing his cheeks with his thumbs, "I trust you."  
"Which is still debatable," Len tacked on, Barry half-heartily smacking his shoulder in response.  
"It's alright, Len, it was just an accident- I had some pretty bad frostbite, but it's mostly healed already, now I just look like I purposely slammed myself into every counter in existence."  
"That's not funny."  
"Little bit."

"It's not the healing I have an issue with, Barry, even with how fast you heal, you still *feel* it-...I don't want to hurt you- well, not anymore, I honestly didn't care before-" The man cut himself off, gesturing weakly between the two.  
"You shoot me all the time."  
"With a lower setting that *you* said didn't hurt."  
"Okay, fine- yes, it *hurt,* like- well imagine being hit by a train, but the train is freezing cold and coils around you like a snake."  
"Do I want to know where that analogy came from?"  
"Probably not?"  
Len sighed, resting his forehead against Barry's a look of pure adoration in his eyes, "I'll try my hardest not to have a repeat of today- can't be making mistakes in my line of work."  
"Softy."  
"Don't you dare- my reputation, Barry."  
"Wouldn't dream of ruining it."

The hero slipped out of his hold, standing and holding out his hands.  
"Now- I demand warm cuddling to make up for your terrible mistake."  
A huff of laughter escaped the thief, but he otherwise didn't comment on it, instead, standing and walking with Barry to their room, where they proceeded to get ready for bed before falling asleep with Len's arms wrapped around Barry.  
Someone outside looking in might think their set up toxic, but they were who they were, and changing that was an uphill battle-  
Maybe one day they wouldn't constantly find themselves at odds with each other within the guise of their other personas, but that day wasn't today.  
So Captain Cold and Flash would have to have their issues, as long as Len and Barry left them at the door.


End file.
